SEE YOU LATER ALLIGATOR
On the way to the border from Bolivia to Brazil, Lotte said jokingly; ‘maybe the border will be closed for siesta’. While filling up our gasoline tank one more time for the local price (rather than the price for foreigners, which is 230% of the local price), we checked the border’s opening hours and to our surprise it was really closed from 12:30 to 14:30.
So, we decided to have our last Bolivian meal in Puerto Suarez. We drove to the waterfront in the hope to find a restaurant there. We did and asked what they served. First, we couldn’t believe it and checked many times if we understood them correctly; yes, they were serving alligator (caiman).
Since we are a fan of trying local dishes and new animals, we ordered this (deep-fried) ‘Yacare’ accompanied with yucca and it tasted really good; somewhat between chicken and fish, but with a different texture. After this very nice goodbye to Bolivia, we were ready to hit another unknown country; Brazil.
SHIT HAPPENS, FLOWERS GROW ON IT
At the Brazilian border, the staff spoke English well and was very helpful. They even printed a map for us with the location of the Federal Police station, where we could camp safely.
As the sun was setting, we decided to spend the night in hot Corumbá after saying hi to the policemen there. The next day, we asked one of the kind policemen if he knew any good electrician to fix a problem we had with the camper. Fifteen minutes later, the electrician (Diego Abrahao Alle) arrived and had a quick look. He said he could have a closer look the next day and invited us to park in front of his hostel; Hostel Road Riders, where the best band of Corumbá was playing that night.
We didn’t expect to find someone capable to fix our electrical problems in this city with only some 100,000 inhabitants. Yet, Diego proved to be super talented; not only as an electrician, but also as a fantastic car mechanic (with his own garage), businessman and even as a cook.
He fixed and upgraded our camper very well and we were really impressed. At the meantime, we painted the interior of our camper and had a fantastic time at the hostel, with every day other interesting guests and especially friendly, hospitable Diego. We would highly recommend Hostel Road Riders to any traveller; either backpacker, biker or driver of any vehicle as it’s a safe and fantastic place to be, full of opportunities, fun activities and amazing food.
Diego offered the option to go on his ‘ultraleve’ (ultralight aircraft) to enjoy a flight over the Pantanal by sunset. It was fantastic having a panoramic view over the world’s largest freshwater wetland. The view was even greater than just panoramic, as you could look under your legs and feet to see the ground beneath and even the sky above you. It was a very unique and new experience to be hanging under the wings in a totally open structure, very different from being on a little (closed) plane such as a Cessna 152. The ultimate feeling of freedom! Many thanks for the safe flight to the perfect pilot Geraldo Albaneze!
For bookings and pricing information, contact Diego at Hostel Road Riders.
